Be Advised...

Officers and survivors partner to prevent parole for Ohio cop killer

Editor’s Note:

Editor's Note: Barb and Joe Phegley — the parents of Officer Jeffrey Phegley — said that the effort to keep their son's killer behind bars is a daunting task. “We cannot do it alone and must rely on the kindness and generosity of family, friends, concerned citizens, and even total strangers to assist us. Anything you can do to help us keep him in prison to serve his life sentence would be greatly appreciated.” Add your comments below this article — we will compile and send them to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections Office of Victim Services.

On January 21, 1987, a 22-year-old police officer for the Village of Morrow, Ohio named Jeffrey Manning Phegley was shot and killed in the line of duty while performing a traffic stop.

Anthony Wayne McIntosh was convicted of the murder of Officer Phegley later that same year and was sentenced to 15-years-to-life, with an additional three years for using a gun during the commission of his crime. McIntosh has once been denied parole by the Central Office Review Board of the Ohio Adult Parole Authority, but he is again being considered for parole.

PoliceOne Columnist Lt. Dan Marcou, in his excellent column written in response to the murder of four Oakland police officers earlier this year, called parole “a national game of Russian Roulette.”

On January 21, 1987, a 22-year-old police officer for the Village of Morrow, Ohio named Jeffrey Manning Phegley was shot and killed in the line of duty while performing a traffic stop. Anthony Wayne McIntosh was convicted of the murder of Officer Phegley later that same year and was sentenced to 15-years-to-life, with an additional three years for using a gun during the commission of his crime. McIntosh has once been denied parole by the Central Office Review Board of the Ohio Adult Parole Authority, but he is again being considered for parole.

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“Lovelle Mixon,” Marcou wrote, “is a prime example of that flawed system. He was placed in prison for armed robbery and assault with a deadly weapon. He was released on parole, put back in prison for parole violation, and then released again. Once again, he violated his parole and was wanted on a no-bail warrant for parole violation. He was stopped in East Oakland at 1:08 PM on Saturday, March 21, 2009 by motorcycle officers Sgt. Mark Dunakin and Officer John Hege.”

Marcou wrote that when parole boards all over the country release the Mixon’s of the world, it’s almost as if they simply load a round into the cylinder, spin it, and then hand the weapon over to their communities. “Every cop that makes a traffic stop hopes they are not walking up on a live cylinder as these officers did,” Marcou wrote.

In an e-mail we received this week, Ohio COPS President Sara Winfield said, “We need your help. Please take a few minutes to sign the petition, write a personal letter, or sign the attached form letter, requesting that Inmate McIntosh’s parole be again denied, and that he be required to serve his life sentence.”

According to Winfield, McIntosh apparently said during his 2000 parole hearing that he didn’t expect to get parole that time because he killed a cop, but that he thought he’d get out in five years. “The parole board answered that bold statement when he was given an additional 10 years before his next hearing, the hearing that he is now up for,” Winfield wrote.

In a letter dated September 8, 2009 Barb and Joe Phegley — the parents of Patrolman Jeffrey Phegley — said that the effort to keep Inmate McIntosh locked up is a daunting task. “We cannot do it alone and must rely on the kindness and generosity of family, friends, concerned citizens, and even total strangers to assist us. Anything you can do to help us keep him in prison to serve his life sentence would be greatly appreciated.”

So, what can you do? You can print out this petition and pass it around your squad room, or you can print out and sign this form letter — either or both of which may then be sent to the Parole Board. Anyone wishing to write a personal letter instead of using the form letter is encouraged to do so.

You can also add your comments below this article — we will compile them and send them all in a single bundle.

If you wish, you can address your correspondence to the Parole Board but mail it to PoliceOne — we’ll collect those and send them to Barb and Joe Phegley for forwarding to the Parole Board in a single package.

About the author

Doug Wyllie is Editor at Large for PoliceOne, responsible for providing police training content and expert analysis on a wide range of topics and trends that affect the law enforcement community. An award-winning columnist — he is the 2014 Western Publishing Association "Maggie Award" winner in the category of Best Regularly Featured Digital Edition Column — Doug has authored more than 900 feature articles and tactical tips. Doug is also responsible for planning and recording the PoliceOne Podcast, Policing Matters, as well as being the on-air host for PoliceOne Video interviews. Doug also works closely with the PoliceOne Academy to develop training designed to prepare cops for the fight they face every day on the street.

Doug regularly represents PoliceOne as a public speaker in a variety of forums and is available for media interviews — he has appeared on numerous local and national radio and television news programs, and has been quoted in a host of print publications.

Doug is a member of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA), an Associate Member of the California Peace Officers' Association (CPOA), and a member of the Public Safety Writers Association (PSWA).